The Election Commission of India
Constitutional Status (Article 324)
Authority:
- Independent Constitutional Body
- Not under government control
- Conducts all elections (national, state, local)
- Sole authority to conduct elections; government cannot interfere
Composition:
- Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) - head
- Two Election Commissioners (added later)
- Supported by election officials across states
Independence:
- CEC and commissioners cannot be removed except by President (for misconduct)
- Cannot be arbitrary removed by government
- Financial autonomy
Responsibilities
Pre-Election:
- Fix election dates and schedules
- Prepare electoral rolls (voter lists)
- Delimit constituencies (decide boundaries)
- Register candidates
During Election:
- Conduct polling
- Maintain security and order
- Prevent booth capturing
- Monitor fair election
Post-Election:
- Count votes
- Declare results
- Handle election disputes
- Oversee bye-elections
Code of Conduct:
- Enforces election code
- Regulates campaign finance
- Controls media coverage
- Prevents government misuse during election
Electoral System
Type of Voting System
First Past the Post (FPTP):
- Each constituency has one representative
- Candidate with most votes wins (even if <50%)
- Loser gets nothing (no proportional seats)
- Simple, decisive
- But: Can produce disproportionate representation
Example: Candidate A gets 40%, Candidate B gets 35%, Candidate C gets 25%. Candidate A wins despite 60% voting against them.
Advantages:
- Simple and easy to understand
- Produces stable, decisive government
- Clear local representative
Disadvantages:
- Can ignore minority views
- Disproportionate representation
- Leads to waste of votes
- Benefits large parties
Lok Sabha Elections
General Elections:
- Every 5 years (unless dissolved early)
- 543 Lok Sabha seats contested
- Single-member constituencies
- Universal Adult Suffrage: Everyone 18+ (recently lowered from 21) can vote
- Secret ballot
Voting Process:
- Constituency-based: Each voter votes for candidate in their constituency
- Single Vote: One vote per person per election
- Paper Ballot/EVM: Initially paper; now Electronic Voting Machines (introduced 1998)
- Verification: VVPAT (Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail) added 2019
Election Process:
- Notification: EC notifies election schedule
- Nomination: Candidates file nomination papers
- Scrutiny: Nominations examined
- Withdrawal: Candidates can withdraw
- Polling: Voting held in phases (usually multiple phases for security)
- Counting: Results counted; margins can be close or large
State Assembly Elections
Similar to Lok Sabha:
- Every 5 years (unless dissolved)
- State assembly seats elected
- FPTP system
- Universal adult suffrage
Variations:
- State assembly sizes differ (UP: 403 members; Goa: 40 members)
- State representation varies by population
- Timing: Sometimes synchronized with Lok Sabha, sometimes separate
Electoral Representation
Delimitation (Articles 327-329):
- Boundaries of constituencies determined by EC
- Done periodically (usually every 10 years with census)
- Attempts to ensure roughly equal populations per constituency
- But: No state loses constituency even if population declines (protection for smaller states)
Reservations in Elections (Articles 330-342):
- SC/ST Reservations: Constituencies reserved for SC/ST candidates
- 15% for SC, 7.5% for OBC (approximately)
- Rotating basis: different seats reserved in different elections
- Aims for representation of marginalized groups